Folding step for railway-cars.



No. 877,708. PATENTED JAN. 28, 1908. A. FULLER.

FOLDING STEP FOR RAILWAY ems.

APPLICATION FILED APR.19, 1907.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

No. 877,708. PATENTED JAN. 28, 1908.

A. FULLER. FOLDING STEP FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED APR.19, 1907.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNEEIEJEE! UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FOLDING STEP "FOR RAILWAY-CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Jan. 28, 1908.

Application filed Apr-i119 1907. Serial No. 369.071-

To all whom it may concern: ways formed in the cleats, 13, on the outerBe it'known that I, ANDERs N FULLER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Amsterdam, county of Montgomery, and State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Folding Steps forRailway-Cars, of which the following isaspecification. The inventionrelates, to such improvements and consists of the novel construction andcombination of parts hereinafter described and subsequently claimed.

Referencemay e had to the accompany-' ing drawings, and the referencecharacters markedthereon, whiohform a part of this specification.

Similar characters refer to similar parts in the several figurestherein. Figure 1 of the drawings is a bottom plan view of one endof arailway car showing my invention applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a view inend elevation of the same end of the car. Fig. 3 is a verticalcross-section of the same taken on the broken line 3-.3 in. Fig. 1. Fig.4 is. a vertical cross-section taken on the broken-line 4-4 in Fig. 1.Fig. 5 is an en: larged. detail showing the manner in which the notchedportion of the handle slide-bar interlocks with a slideway-cleat. so:The principal object of" the invention is to automatically fold atemporary car-step, upon the starting of the car.

' Other objects of the invention will appear in connection with thefollowing description. Referring to the drawings wherein the inventionis shown in preferred form, 1, represents the floor of platform of arailway-car, mounted u on a truck, 2, partly shown in Fi 1. T 1e truckcomprises in part the axle, 3, and car-wheel 4. The car is pro videdwith the usual permanent steps 5.

Mounted upon the underside of .the lower step, in bearings, 6, is arock-shaft, 7, upon. I which areiixed two Z-shaped rocker arms, 8,45,forming supports for the temporary step, 9,. which is adapted toswing from the-extended steps, and provided with a handle 15.

The slide-bar, 12, is provided on one of its vertical edges withanotched portion, 16, adapted to receive and interlock with the upperslideway-cleat, 13, when" thebar is in its'lowered position,

as hown inFig. 2, and it is also provided with a notched ortion, 17,adapted to receive and interloc same slideway-cleat when theslide-bar isin its, raised position. Y

A spring, 20, yieldingly forces the slidebar toward the portion 0 the.slideway-cleat adapted to enter said notches, so that the barautomatically locks itself in either the raised or lowered position, butcan be re wise, to the left, as seen in Fig. 2, against the force of thespring, 20, thus permitting the bar to be raised and loweredwhendesired;

Normally the temporary step, 9, is sup-. portedin folded position withthe slide bar, 12, locked'in' raised positionby the engagement of-itsnotchedportion, 17,with the upper slid'ew'a y-cleat, 13, andvwhen it isdesired-toiuse' the temporary step, as when the car stops for passengerscar, the slid -bar is'disengaged from the upper slideway-eleat andforced downwardly by hand until the temporary step has been swung to theposition shown in Fig. 2, in

which'positi'on it is secure gagementof the notched slide-bar, with theupper s The temporary step can if desired, by disengaging the slide-barfrom the upper slideway-cleat, and then raising the ba'nfromthe'position shown in Fig. 2, to I that shown in Fig. 3, in whichposition it is supported by the engagement of its notched portion, 17,with the upper slideway-cleat. An important feature of my inventionconsists in means whereby, when the car is started, the temporary stepwill be automatically moved from extended to folded osition shown bysolid lines in Figs. 1 and 2 )osition. To accomplish .this, I connectthe lower end of the slide-bar, 12, by means of a to thefolded positionshown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, in which folded position the temcord,21, passing over suitable pulleys with a drum, 22, loosely mounted onthe axle, 3,

poiary step, 9, lies beneath the upperpere and provided with. aclutchmember, 24,

manent step 5.

As a means for operating the temporary adapted at certain times to beforced into step, the rock-shaft, 7 is provided on one end engagementwith a'clutch member, 25, fixed upon the axle, 3, whereby, when theclutch .:ith a segmentalgear, 10, adapted to be engaged by a toothedraek, 11, on the'lower end members are in engagement .w1th each other ofa slide-bar, 12, vertically movable in 'slide l with the car in motion,

ideway-cleat.

be folded by hand side of the string-board, 14 of thepermanentv with theleased by forcing the bar, by hand or other-.

toenter or leave the p,ortion,-{16, of the ly held by the enthecordI'21, will be forked. arm, 26, engaging point opposite the temporarystep, is a proportioned that when the notched portion, 16, from showninFig. 2, with the clutch members, 24 and 25, in engagementwith eachother,

.- upon, the pull of said cord releasing the slide- I above described,until the temporary step same time that the step reaches its foldedwound upon the drum 22. The clutch member and drum, 22, are capable ofsliding movements l ongitu dinally of the axle, 3, and are adapted to beslid along the axle to cause engagement and disengagement of the clutchmembers with each other, by means of a a flange, 27, on the drum, saidforked arm being fixed upon a rock-shaft 28, supported in hangers, 29,depending from the underside of the car floor, saidshaft, 28, extendinglongitudinally of the car. Projecting from the rock-shaft, 28, at amatically locked by t e engagement of the notched portion, 17, oftheslide-bar, 12, With the upper slidewayscleat, as soon as the pull uponthe cord, 21, is relieved.

In order to provide sufficient slack for the cord, to permit the step tobe lowered by hand in case the cord on the. drum-should notbe unwoundafter the step has been automatically folded, and before it is desiredto extend the step again, I run the cord, 21,

string-piece, 14, then to a pulley, 37, on the underside of the car,floor, then to a pulley, 38, on the remote end of a lever, 39, fulcrumedat, 40,- upon the underside of the car floor, and normally held by thecoil sprin 41, against a stop, 42, ina positionextending longitudinallyof the car, the cordpassing from the pulley, 38, to a pulley, 43, on theother end of said lever, "then to a pulley, 44, .on the underside of thecar body, whence it passes to the drum 22. The pulleys, 37 and 44, lieon opposite sides that a pull upon the cord, 21, causes the lever, 39,to be swung approximately into line with the two pulleys, 37 and. 44, asindicated by dottedlines in Fig. 1. -Whenever the clutch members aredisengaged rocker arm, 30, which extends into the path traversed by thetemporary step in swinging from its extended position to its foldedposition. The various parts are so located and temporary step, 9, isfolded, it engages and supports the rockerarm, 30,. as indicated bydotted lines in Fig. 2, thereby holding the clutch member, 24, out ofengagement with the clutch member, 25 ;'and, when the temporary step isswung from the folded position to the extended" position, the rockerarm, 30, by its own weight, serves to rock the shaft, 28, and therebythrough the rocker arm, 26, force the clutch member, 24, into engagementwiththe clutch member 25.

The cord, 21, passes from the lower end of the slide-bar, 12, arounda-small pulley, 31, on the lower slideway-cleat; thence'around pulley,32, fixed upon. the lower arm of a ever, 33, fulcrumed intermediately ofits endsupon the string-piece, 14, the upper end of which lever isprovided with a friction roller, 34, engageable with the slide-bar,whereby, when a pull .is'exerted upon the cord, 21, the upper end of thelever, 33, with its roller, 34, is forced against the notched edge ofthe slide-bar, 12, moving said bar to the left, as shown in Fig. 2,against the force of the spring, 20, and thereby disengaging the theupper slidewaycleat. The slide-bar is thus held disengaged from the sli.leway-cleat, 13, and free to respond to the upward pull of the cord,21, as long as such a pull is.exerted upon said cord.

The step being in theextended position ically assume the position shownin Fig. 1; and, if the clutch members should be brought into engagementwith each other beforethe temporary step has been fully lowered, thepulley, 39, will yield to the pull of the cord, and let out enough ofthe cord to permit the step to be fully extended. The coil spring, 41,is preferably coiled.;aroundthe pivotbolt or pin, of thelever, 39,having one end fixed to said bolt, and the other end to the lever.

by Letters Patent is 1. In a car, the combination with a permanent step,a folding step and means for extending the folding step, of thecar-axle,connections' between the folding step and caraXle. whereby thefolding step is automatically folded by step actuated mechanism forinterruptin the connection between the foldin step an car-axle when saidstep reaches to ded position.

2. In a car, the combination with a per manent step, a folding step andmeans for extending the folding step, of the car-axle, connectionsbetween thefolding step and caraxle whereby the folding step isautomatically folded by when the car is started, the drum, 22, will berotated and the cord, 21, wound therebar, 12, and drawing the sameupward as hasbecn swung from the extended position As the temporary stepapproaches the folded position, it engages the rocker arm, 30, forcingthe same upwardly until it tl'ierebycauses the disengagement of theclutch member, 24, from the chitoh member, 25, at substantially the.s'tep operating mechanism from the axle when said step reaches foldedposition.

3. In a car, the combination with a permanent step, a folding step andmeans for extending the folding step, of the oar-axle, a

from each other, the lever, 39, will a'utomat- 'position, in whichfolded position it isauto 1 from the pulley, 32, to a pulley, 36, ontheof the lever, 39, so

What I claim as new and desireto secure movement of the car and movementof the car, and Y means forautomatically disconnecting thedrum andclutch member together loosely mounted on said axle and capable of slidemovemen longitudinally thereon, a clutch member 11 d to said axle in thepath of said other clutch member, a cord connecting thefolding-step-operatin mechanism with said i drum, guides for said cord,and clutch-shil't- 1 i drum loosely mounted on the car-axle, meanswhereby the drum'is at certain times con- 15 nected with, and at certainother times disconnected from, the axle, a cord connecting I my handthis 15 the folding step-operating mechanism with said drum, guides forsaid cord, and a yieldrig take-up forsaid cord. 20 In testimony whereof,I have hereunto set day of April, 1907. ANDERSON FULLER. Witnessesc.

JAY WloKs,

EDWARD A. FULLER.

